Yi Yang held the little porcelain bottle Zhao Gang had left him. He pulled out the stopper, and a medicinal fragrance escaped, mild and lingering. It did not sting his nose, yet carried a strength that seeped deep into his lungs.
"Water Essence Pill."
Yi Yang murmured its name.
Zhao Gang talked like a rough-and-ready wanderer, but he was fairly considerate in how he handled things.
This pill was just right for protecting the organs and nourishing the blood at the qi-blood second level. In the Black Market, he probably could not even get near one without thirty or forty taels, and he would need the right connections too.
Although he was at the qi-blood third level, a pill that increased cultivation and qi-blood like this was still very useful.
Favors were more troublesome than silver. Once silver was spent, that was that. Once a favor was owed, no one could say when it would have to be repaid.
Yi Yang rolled the porcelain bottle across his palm twice, then finally tipped out the pill and swallowed it.
The pill felt slightly cool as it entered his stomach, then melted into a warm current that spread through his chest and abdomen.
Yi Yang wasted no time. He immediately rose and assumed his stance.
As he performed the Yi Wood Longevity Stance, the stance guided the Water Essence Pill's medicinal power through his flesh, tendons, and meridians.
Wherever his qi-blood passed, his tendons and meridians heated up, and the flesh beneath his skin stirred to life.
Small characters appeared before his eyes.
[Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art, third layer: (1260/12000)]
"Hm?"
Yi Yang narrowed his aged eyes. It had been 1,245 points before, yet now it had increased by fifteen outright.
With the progress bar lengthened again, every step was harder to chew through than before.
Without pills, several rounds of nighttime training only moved it a little-even with the multiplier, the gain was just sixty points. His strength no longer rose as quickly as before. Yet after swallowing the Water Essence Pill, his progress pushed forward with gratifying ease.
Yi Yang did not rush greedily. The medicinal power was gentle, but he could not put his old body through reckless strain.
He practiced the stance over and over, pressing the medicinal power into his flesh without wasting a fraction.
The summer heat clung to the courtyard. Mosquitoes circled him a few times, then were driven away by the heat steaming from his qi-blood.
Well past midnight, the pagoda tree's shadow slanted toward the corner of the wall.
Yi Yang finally finished his practice.
[Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art, third layer: (2000/12000)]
He stared at that line without moving for a long while.
A single Water Essence Pill had pushed him this far in one night.
With enough pills, he could quickly reach the qi-blood fourth level, the bone tempering realm.
Yi Yang remembered the Blackwood Pill Case Yang Da had carried. The Sinew-Breaking Bone-Pulling Pill was still inside.
It was suited to breaking into tendon refining from the peak of the qi-blood second level. For him now, simply swallowing it would be rather wasteful.
It would still provide medicinal power, but it was not the right fit. Good steel belonged on the blade's edge, and pills were no different.
Trading it for a Bone Tempering Pill, Sinew-Strengthening Powder, or something that nourished the internal organs would be the sensible way to avoid squandering it.
"Yang Shuqing, you weren't very professional with this gift. Now this old man has to do the trading himself."
Yi Yang muttered to himself, then returned to his room to rest.
When the horizon began to pale, Jiang Yuexin pushed open her door and came out.
Rubbing her eyes, she saw that Yi Yang had already changed into his freshly washed long robe. An old cloth sash cinched his waist, and he had pinned up his hair with a wooden hairpin.
He was still old.
But he looked much tidier than usual.
Jiang Yuexin blinked. "Grandpa, dressed like that, you really do look like an accountant from town."
Yi Yang tapped her head. "Does an accountant have old bones as tough as mine?"
Jiang Yuexin covered her head and muttered, "Boasting again."
Yi Yang put his important belongings on his person. "I have business in town today. Bolt the door while I'm away. Don't open it for anyone."
Jiang Yuexin nodded in agreement. Although she did not know what Yi Yang was going to do, she was sensible enough not to ask.
At the northwestern corner of Cloud Pattern Town, two Patrol Guards stood outside the Inspection Storehouse with sabers in hand.
From the street, the place looked unremarkable: gray brick walls, an old wooden sign, and not even an imposing stone beast by the entrance.
If not for the sharp sabers at the two Patrol Guards' waists, most passersby would have taken it for a government storeroom full of broken tables and battered chairs.
Yi Yang walked to the entrance and took out the Black Iron Token.
The Command Token flipped over.
The number "thirty-four" on its back gleamed darkly in the morning light.
The guards had been sizing up this old country man, but the moment they saw the token, their backs straightened.
"Greetings, Patrol Captain, sir."
The other man also cupped his fists in salute.
"Please come inside, sir."
Yi Yang paused for half a beat. That form of address was rather novel. In sixty years of life, he had always had to bow before government officers and give way to martial artists.
Now, two young Patrol Guards were calling him sir.
Yi Yang put away the Command Token and coughed twice. "This old man is new here. I don't know the way."
The Patrol Guard answered respectfully. "Go straight ahead once you enter, sir. Past the Martial Arts Yard in the front courtyard, the registration room is on the left. If you can't find it, I can show you the way."
"No need. I'll go myself."
Yi Yang waved a hand and stepped through the courtyard gate.
Once inside, the sight made him look around a little longer. Unremarkable on the outside, it concealed a whole other world within.
Gray stone paved the front courtyard, its surface polished bright by the feet of those practicing martial arts.
There were Martial Arts Yards on both sides.
To the east stood rows of wooden stakes, with iron-sand punching bags hanging in two lines. Several bare-chested Patrol Guards practiced their punches, sweat running down their shoulders and backs.
To the west, weapon racks stood in neat rows. Sabers, spears, staffs, hatchets, and chains were all kept clean and well maintained.
Farther inside was a small Drill Ground.
A dozen or so Patrol Guards were practicing grappling together, striking hard and pulling back quickly.
Anyone thrown to the ground got up, rubbed his arm, and went back in.
There was not a word of idle chatter.
These were not flashy routines used to fool apprentices in a martial arts school. This was a place for drawing government pay and cutting down cultists.
A noticeboard stood by the wall, posted with a mission roster and a merit exchange chart.
Qi-Blood Pills, Water Essence Pills, Sinew-Strengthening Powder, Bone Tempering Pills...
Yi Yang needed only a glance to commit those lines to memory.
Calling this a branch hardly did it justice. Even calling it half a small government office felt like selling it short.
The Heaven Patrol Office had clearly not earned the wariness of the great clans and the government through empty boasts.
"Old Man Yi!"
A familiar call came from the side.
Ren Hao strode over.
Today he wore the Heaven Patrol Office's short black uniform, with a saber hanging at his waist. He looked much sharper than before.
But the moment he saw Yi Yang, a little of his slippery wanderer's manner resurfaced. "You're finally here. Boss Zhao was worried you wouldn't find the way, so he specifically told me to wait for you here."
Yi Yang glanced at his waist badge. "You joined the office too?"
Ren Hao chuckled. "Thanks to Boss Zhao, I managed to land a Patrol Guard post. Nothing compared to you. You're a Patrol Captain-I have to call you sir when I see you."
As he spoke, he actually cupped his fists and bowed.
"Greetings, Sir Yi."
Yi Yang tapped his shoulder. "Enough of that. Calling me sir feels like it'll shave years off my life."
Yi Yang asked, "Where's Zhao Gang?"
"Boss Zhao went east of town today to investigate some leads."
As Ren Hao led the way, he explained quietly, "In our Heaven Patrol Office, the lowest rank is Patrol Guard. Above that is Patrol Captain, who can lead a squad."
"Above that are Patrol Chief Candidate, Deputy Patrol Chief, and Patrol Chief."
"Steward Fang-Fang Yue-is the head of the Cloud Pattern Town branch. He's in the qi-blood fifth level organ refining realm. You could say he's the strongest man in Cloud Pattern Town. Even the County Commandant in the county seat is only on par with him."
Yi Yang listened without speaking.
Ren Hao continued, "Normally, Patrol Captains can lead teams to investigate cases. They have three to five Patrol Guards under them at the least, or seven to eight at the most. In your case, though..."
He paused and gave two awkward chuckles. "The Archive Hall is a special case. There's no squad."
Yi Yang finished for him. "Managing case files."
"Right. Old cases, rosters, cult leads, unusual activity in the villages-it all piles up there. It's quiet work, but there's little merit to be earned."
Worried that Yi Yang might feel slighted, Ren Hao added, "But you still get a Patrol Captain's benefits. Monthly pay, an allotment of medicinal materials, access to internal exchanges-not one thing is missing."
Yi Yang nodded. "That's enough."
Looking at him, Ren Hao could not help saying, "Old man, you really are unflappable. Anyone else would already be cursing if they heard they had no squad to lead."
Yi Yang said, "I get money, I get medicine, and I don't have to lead men to their deaths. What's bad about this job?"
Ren Hao slapped his thigh. "Put that way, even I want to apply to look after case files."
"You?"
Yi Yang gave him a sidelong look. "You'd probably wear through the chair after sitting for half a day."
Caught short, Ren Hao coughed awkwardly.
The two entered the registration room.
A young clerk sat inside. He was in his early twenties, with a pale face and slender fingers. Registers, a red seal, waist badges, and several stacks of official documents lay on his desk.
Seeing Ren Hao enter, he was just about to speak.
Ren Hao handed over Yi Yang's Command Token first. "The newly appointed Patrol Captain of the Archive Hall, Sir Yi Yang, is here to register."
The young clerk opened the register. When he saw the word "sixty," his brush stopped.
He looked up at Yi Yang: graying hair, an old long robe, a slightly stooped back, and hands covered in alarmingly thick calluses.
A sixty-year-old at the qi-blood second level.
Even in the Heaven Patrol Office, that was rare. After all, ordinary martial artists usually suffered declining qi-blood by that age. How could they still maintain the strength of the qi-blood second level?
The young clerk did not dare ask further and adopted a thoroughly respectful manner.
"Sir Yi, please leave your handprint."
Yi Yang pressed down his handprint.
The clerk then took out a small wooden token and a ring of keys.
"This is your residence Command Token. The third room in the west wing of the Archive Hall's rear courtyard is yours to use. If you bring family members, you can register them with the miscellaneous affairs room and receive an additional grain allotment, but they cannot enter the inner courtyard's archive storage without permission."
At the mention of family members, Yi Yang's hand paused.
Jiang Yuexin was still in Three Trees Village. Before, he had had no choice but to stay in that rundown courtyard and scrape by.
Now that he had a position in town and the Heaven Patrol Office's mantle over him, leaving the little girl alone in the village was no longer appropriate.
Trouble in Three Trees Village came one crop after another.
Who could guarantee that another Sun Mazi or Yang Er would not emerge?
The town was not necessarily clean, but at least the Heaven Patrol Office's walls were high enough and its blades bright enough.
"Is registering a family member troublesome?"
The clerk replied, "Not at all. Just provide their name, age, and relationship to you. Lodging and grain allotments are calculated separately. Clothing must be supplied by yourselves."
Yi Yang nodded.
"I'll bring her in a couple of days."
Once the paperwork was complete, Ren Hao took Yi Yang to the storeroom.
The storeroom keeper was a one-eyed man with a face full of brutish flesh, but he put on no airs when he saw Command Token number thirty-four.
"Two sets of regulation Patrol Captain uniforms, one saber, one waist badge, and one portion each of a fire lighter, rope, and Blood-Staunching Powder."
The one-eyed man pushed the items over one by one.
The Heaven Patrol Office's uniform was black with red trim. The fabric was thick and sturdy, and the cuffs were fitted. Wearing it would strip away some of his rustic air.
The saber was three feet long, its black wooden sheath bound in iron.
Yi Yang drew it half an inch and inspected it.
The edge gleamed, and the steel was decent. It was far more presentable than his old woodcutting cleaver.
Yi Yang slid the saber back into its sheath and hung it at his waist. "Just what I needed-a blade fit to be seen in public."
With his registration complete, Yi Yang stood in the Heaven Patrol Office's courtyard, watching the Patrol Guards coming and going across the Martial Arts Yard.
Black uniforms, sabers at their waists, Command Tokens, medicinal materials, case files.
This place held no shortage of danger. But to him, it was also a vast medicine storehouse, an enormous net, and an umbrella broad enough to shelter the past.
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